Ofsted said the changes are intended to “reduce the burden on school leaders” and allow “more time and flexibility for inspectors to get to know the school, including its context and priorities”.
Chief inspector Sir Martyn Oliver unveiled the plans during his address at the National Association of Head Teachers’ annual conference.
It means that as of September this year, inspectors will no longer conduct deep dives during ungraded inspections – a move which will affect around 3,000 ungraded inspections planned for next year (an estimated 40% of all inspections due next year).
The change, Ofsted acknowledged, has been driven by feedback from small primary schools, which have found the deep dives particularly challenging due to the strain they put on small teaching teams. However, the new approach will benefit all schools.
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